Kent resident Rob Mitchell says “people are getting fed up” with the Trump administration and its “authoritarian government.”
Mitchell joined about 1,500 people on Saturday afternoon, June 14 lining sidewalks and holding signs on both sides of a stretch of Southeast 272nd Street at a peaceful protest in Covington, part of a nationwide “No Kings” event that drew thousands of people across the state and millions across the nation.
“I just feel like the American people need to have their voice heard,” Mitchell said about why he showed up for the protest, just east of Kent and State Route 18. “The emotions and feelings are growing. People are getting fed up.”
The turnout in Covington, the state and the nation encouraged Mitchell.
“A lot of people are done with the overreach, the racism and we don’t want to see a fascist government in charge of the United States,” Mitchell said. “We’re in an authoritarian government and our government is clearly fascist. They don’t really care about Americans in general. It’s all about power and control. Look at what’s happening down in LA (Los Angeles).”
More than five million people nationwide rallied at over 2,100 events across the country, condemning President Donald Trump’s escalating abuses of power, according to an American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) press release.
The wave of protests were co-sponsored by the ACLU, Indivisible, and a coalition of labor, environmental, and human rights organizations, and was the largest mass mobilization since Trump’s return to office, according to the ACLU.
“Today’s (June 14) protests are a resounding message that people across the nation will not be intimidated by President Trump’s fear tactics,” said Deirdre Schifeling, ACLU chief politicial and advocacy officer. “Americans are brave, democracy loving people and will not sit idly by as the Trump administration feeds our Constitution into the shredder — nor will the ACLU.”
More than 70,000 people attended a protest in Seattle, 10,000 in Spokane and 5,000 in Olympia based on media reports of estimates by event organizers. “No Kings” protests also were held in nearby Renton, Maple Valley, Auburn, Des Moines and Federal Way.
Connie Compton, of Kent, who helped organize the protest through Indivisible Covington, estimated the crowd at 1,500 or more.
“I think that as time goes on more and more people are frustrated with the direction things are going,” Compton said. “They are unhappy. They don’t want to see tanks in Washington, D.C . They don’t want to see military forces in LA. They don’t want to see their neighbors arrested. This is Covington, we’re one of the most diverse cities in the country. We are talking about our neighbors.”
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) took 17 people into custody May 20 from a Kent warehouse. The arrests were made based on an ongoing criminal investigation into the unlawful employment of people without legal work authorization in violation of federal law, according to a May 21 email from an ICE spokesperson.
The immigration arrests locally and nationwide are one of the many reasons Kathy Downs, of Maple Valley, attended the Covington protest.
“I feel concerned about what’s happening in the country and I feel a need to speak up,” Downs said. “Immigration, defying courts, not listening to what the people want. There are so many things. Social Security. Medicare. Medicaid. I can’t think of them all it’s so overwhelming.”
It excited Downs to see the large turnout lining the main street through Covington, near Fred Meyer, Costco and Safeway.
“People are opening their eyes and realizing how bad it’s getting,” Downs said. “I hope it makes people that aren’t aware, more aware, the people driving by. I think more people need to speak up and show they care.”
Portions of the crowd had many chants, including “Hey, hey, ho, ho, Donald Trump must go,” and “This is what real Democracy looks like.”
Plenty of drivers blew their horns in support of the protest and the signs displayed. A few of the signs messages:
• “No Hate, No Fear, Immigrants are Welcome Here.”
• “Hate Does Not Make America Great.”
• “All Of My Outrage Won’t Fit On One Sign.”
• “Lies!! All Lies!!”
• “We The People Bow To No King.”
• “We Had A King Once, It Didn’t Go Well.”
Peaceful protest
Covington Police Chief Adam Easterbrook said there were no incidents or arrests during the two-hour protest, according to a June 16 email from King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Brandyn Hull. Covington contracts with the Sheriff’s Office for police services.
“Three deputies plus the chief were assigned to the protest and were on standby in case of any unrest; there was none,” according to Easterbrook. “People did slow down along Kent-Kangley (SE 272nd Street) to honk and wave in support or show their displeasure so that did mire down traffic a bit.”
The Sheriff’s Office Guardian 1 helicopter flew over the Covington protest and kept a watch on other protests throughout the county.
“The King County Sheriff’s Office was standing by to offer assistance if needed, but we were not called to respond to anything protest related, in unincorporated or any of our contract cities,” Hull said.
No counter protests were spotted at the Covington event.
Organizers planned the protest on June 14 in response to the military parade Trump put on in Washington, D.C. on the same day. Trump said the parade celebrated the nation’s victories in addition to the Army’s 250th anniversary and Trump’s 79th birthday.
The military parade came just after Trump activated the California National Guard over the governor’s objections and dispatched the U.S. Marines to provide security during Los Angeles protests related to immigration raids, prompting a state lawsuit to stop the deployments, according to Associated Press.
White House officials estimated 250,00o people attended the parade, but Associated Press reported the crowd as under 200,000.
Mitchell, of Kent, much preferred to be protesting Trump on a street corner in Covington than watching the military parade in Washington, D.C.
“It’s a waste of money,” Mitchell said. “It’s really all about stroking Trump’s ego, which is really everything that he’s about.”
People line both sides of SE 272nd Street (Kent Kangley Road) during a June 14 protest against the Trump administration. STEVE HUNTER, Kent Reporter
People wave signs in Covington and many drivers honk their horns in support. STEVE HUNTER, Kent Reporter
The June 14 ‘No Kings’ protest in Covington. STEVE HUNTER, Kent Reporter
The June 14 ‘No Kings’ protest in Covington. STEVE HUNTER, Kent Reporter
King County Sheriff’s Office Guardian 1 helicopter flies over the ‘No Kings’ protest in Covington. STEVE HUNTER, Kent Reporter
Some bathroom humor at the Covington protest. STEVE HUNTER, Kent Reporter
The Trump administration spent an estimated $45 million for a June 14 military parade in Washington, D.C. STEVE HUNTER, Kent Reporter
The ‘No Kings’ protest in Covington. STEVE HUNTER, Kent Reporter
The ‘No Kings’ protest in Covington. STEVE HUNTER, Kent Reporter
The ‘No Kings’ protest in Covington. STEVE HUNTER, Kent Reporter
Many signs were displayed at the June 14 protest in Covington. STEVE HUNTER, Kent Reporter
